Library and Archives Canada announces financial assistance of $1.5 million to support the preservation of documentary heritage: eight projects funded in Ontario

MONTRÉAL, June 2, 2017 /CNW/ - Library and Archives Canada (LAC) will provide $1.5 million to support 48 projects (including 38 new projects) by archives, libraries and documentary heritage institutions throughout Canada. The recipients of this third cycle of the Documentary Heritage Communities Program (DHCP) were announced today in Montréal, at the annual meeting of the Association des archivistes du Québec. Eight projects submitted by organizations located in Ontario will be funded under the program.

The DHCP was created in 2015 to provide financial assistance for activities that enhance the visibility of, and access to, materials held by Canada's local documentary heritage institutions. The program also aims to increase the capacity of local institutions to sustainably preserve, promote and showcase the country's documentary heritage. At the end of the selection process, the DHCP will provide contributions for eligible applicants across Canada for a variety of projects that will allow citizens to access and engage with their nation's history like never before.

The following projects will be funded by the DHCP in Ontario in 2017?2018:

• Ottawa Jewish Archives On line- Digitization of Photography Collections (Jewish Federation of Ottawa - Ottawa Jewish Archives), Ottawa, $19,800
• ARCHIVESCANADA Digital Preservation Service (Canadian Council of Archives), Ottawa, $43,023
• CLGA backlog reduction (Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives), Toronto, $41,667
• Reel Heritage 2.0 (Toronto International Film Festival), Toronto, $27,500
• Increasing access to irreplaceable records of our histories of migration and ethnicity (Multicultural History Society of Ontario), Toronto, $77,461
• Saving rideau Lakes Community Heritage (Women's College Hospital Foundation - The Miss Margaret Robins Archives of Women's College Hospital), Delta, $10,565
• Project Archivist to create and upload Archion Descriptions for six fonds and professional conservation of three ledgers (Archives de Middlesex), Delaware, $30,287
• The WI Historical Documents : A Legacy to Canada (Federated Women's Institutes of Ontario), Stoney Creek, $100,000.

View the list of all recipients for 2017?2018.

Quick facts

• Organizations such as archives, privately funded libraries, historical societies, genealogical organizations and societies, museums with an archival component, and relevant professional associations are eligible to apply for funding under the DHCP.
• Applications received by LAC are reviewed by an external advisory committee.
• Since the implementation of the DHCP in 2015, LAC has invested $4.5 million to support documentary heritage communities.
• The next funding cycle will be launched in fall 2017.

Quotes

"As we celebrate Canada 150, the preservation of our documentary heritage is more important than ever. I would like to congratulate all the beneficiaries of the 2017?2018 Documentary Heritage Communities Program and thank them for the admirable work they do to educate and inform Canadians about their history. We are proud to support these investments, which will continue to support local institutions and help build stronger communities."

? The Honourable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Canadian Heritage

"I believe that we get an incredible return on this investment in our communities! With help from the program, recipient organizations have digitized and described thousands of records and audiovisual recordings, modernized their equipment, trained employees, organized workshops and presented travelling exhibitions that enhance awareness of important chapters in our collective history."

? Guy Berthiaume, Librarian and Archivist of Canada

"The financial support will allow the Musée des ondes Emile Berliner to make publicly available some of the museum's most rare discs from a collection received by Oliver Berliner, the grandson of the inventor of the gramophone and disc, Emile Berliner. As a small museum on Montréal's periphery, we further wish to improve our visibility to the general public and to increase our social and educational impact regarding our museum's mandate. Montréal played a key role in the evolution of sound recording and sound-recording technology, and we hope our project helps to highlight the country's impact, starting this project the year of the celebration of Canada 150."

? Anja Borck, Assistant Director, Musée des ondes Emile Berliner

"This financial support will significantly move the digitization of the approximately 1,000 Tweedsmuir Community History Collections of the Women's Institute (WI) found across Ontario. Some of these Tweedsmuirs would have been lost over time. At the end of this three-year project, about 250,000 more pages will be added to the virtual archives. While the original documents remain locally across Ontario, the digitized documents are together in one location, allowing researchers across Canada and the world to access the Tweedsmuirs and other historical documents and information to learn about our rich communities, conduct family research and discover the wonderful work that has been created by WI members."

? Irene Robillard, Digitizing Coordinator, Federated Women's Institutes of Ontario

Related link
Documentary Heritage Communities Program

About Library and Archives Canada
The mandate of Library and Archives Canada is to preserve the documentary heritage of Canada for the benefit of present and future generations, and to be a source of enduring knowledge accessible to all, thereby contributing to the cultural, social and economic advancement of Canada. Library and Archives Canada also facilitates co-operation among communities involved in the acquisition, preservation and diffusion of knowledge, and serves as the continuing memory of the Government of Canada and its institutions. Follow Library and Archives Canada on Twitter (@LibraryArchives), Facebook, Flickr and YouTube.

SOURCE Library and Archives Canada